Protect Your Home This Christmas
Image by Laura Bittner
Did you know‌? Domestic burglaries are on the increase in England and Wales (source: Guardian.com) There is traditionally a spike in burglary incidents during the festive season (source: Which) Burglaries are more likely to occur in winter, due to the cover offered by the dark, long nights (source: Neighbourhood Watch)
Image by Dave Young
But don’t panic!!! Follow these top tips and you can protect your home from thieves.
All you need is a little common sense‌ Image by Saxon on Flickr
1) Don’t advertise your belongings! Thieves love Christmas, because they are sure to find lots of new, unused presents when they break into your home. Put potential opportunists off by making them believe you have nothing worth stealing.
• Hide your presents: Keep them away from any windows and close your curtains at night. • Avoid putting fancy boxes and wrapping out in plain sight when you put out the rubbish – otherwise this will let the burglar know you have new expensive items in your home. Image by Mike Fleming
2) Is Anybody Home? Another reason thieves love Christmas is because a lot of people head off to friends or family for the holidays – leaving a empty house.
If you are heading away this Christmas, at least give the impression that somebody is home. • Put some lights on a timer if you can – nobody likes to sit in darkness, so a dark home alerts the burglar to an empty home. • Put on the radio. Nobody likes to leave the TV on, but a radio that is tuned in to a talk station can be an equally effective deterrent. Image by Nicholas Liby
3) Keep your property secure Okay, this might be an obvious one… But it might surprise you how easily a burglar can get into your home. Remember to carry out all the usual common sense checks: • •
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Ensure that your doors and windows are locked at night and before you leave the house Secure your Christmas decorations. According to Which, 12% of homes had decorations stolen during Christmas 2009 Ensure there are no tools lying about your garden - a burglar could use one to break in Make sure you have decent home or flat insurance, so you are covered just in case the worst happens Image by Ged Carroll
Remember! If you take the right precautions, you can get through this festive season burglary free! Have a happy and safe Christmas!
Image by Alin Oancea